New research has found yet another reason to avoid catching the flu this season- it could increase your risk of a heart attack if you’re over the age of 35.

A recent study from investigators at the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences and Public Health Ontario in Canada have found that you’re six times more likely to have a heart attack during the week after being diagnosed with the flu, compared to the year before or after the infection.

However, your chances of having a heart attack when you have the flu depends on your baseline risk. Most of the people who had a heart attack in this study were over the age of 65, and a lot of them had risk factors for heart disease, such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol or diabetes.

Malissa Wood, MD, Co-Director of the Corrigan Women’s Heart Health Program at Massachusetts General Hospital, says that these results confirm the connection between cardiovascular events, such as a heart attack, and respiratory infections like the flu.

“The flu is like a stress test for the heart,” says Wood in this NBC Boston news clip.

Of course, the best way to reduce your risk of flu-related health complications is to avoid getting the flu in the first place. Learn about preventative steps that you can take.

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